Exploiting the Different Polarity in Piezoresistive Characteristics of Conducting Polymers for Strain Gauge Applications

Piezoresistivity defines the change in resistance of a material in response to mechanical stress. We exploited the effects of structural modifications on the piezoresistive properties of conducting polymers, poly(2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid) doped polyaniline, PANI-PAAMPSA, and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate), PEDOT:PSS, for strain gauge applications. Under tensile deformation, the resistances of as-cast PANI-PAAMPSA and PEDOT:PSS increase due to increased separation between the electrostatically stabilized conducting polymer particles. Upon solvent annealing in dichloroacetic acid, DCA, PANI-PAAMPSA's resistance decreases whereas PEDOT:PSS's resistance still increases with tension. While DCA treatment reduces the electrostatic interactions between PANI and PAAMPSA, it only removes the PSS overlayer in PEDOT:PSS. The change in the polarity of PANI-PAAMPSA's piezoresistivity is attributed to the unlocking of the globular structure of the as-synthesized conducting polymer complex with DCA-treatment, which then enables strain-induced crystallization on deformation. By tuning the piezoresistive characteristics of the polymers through structural modification, we can design strain gauge circuits for monitoring the conditions of civil structures.